Navjot Sidhu: From 'Sid who?' to 'Sixer Sidhu!'

Navjot Sidhu's long career came to an end when he officially announced
yesterday that his playing days were over. The Sardar had great success in
both Test and One Day cricket. In the shorter version of the game, Sidhu
began his career at number three when he burst on the scene in the 1987
World Cup. His scores of 73, 75, 51, 55 and 22 signaled the beginning of a
long successful career.

In the very next tournament he played at Sharjah Sidhu came close to making
his first century in limited overs cricket when he made 88 against the
Kiwis. He finally had to wait 24 matches before he could proudly wave the
bat to the audiences after notching up three figures. His 108 against
Pakistan in the Champions Trophy was the first of six hundreds in a career
that spanned 136 games and yielded 4414 runs.

Of all the innings he has played, Sidhu remembers his 134 against England
at Gwalior most fondly. When making the announcement about his retirement
Sidhu called it the most memorable day in his cricketing life. England
batted first and scored 256 thanks mainly to a 129 at the top of the
innings from Robin Smith. Scoring 257 was always going to be an uphill
task.

When Sidhu lost his opening partner Manoj Prabhakar for a duck, his
heart must have been in his mouth. Soon after, Vinod Kambli fell to Devon
Malcolm for two. India were two wickets down with just four runs on the
board. From then on there was no looking back. Navjot 'Sixer' Sidhu and
Mohammad Azharuddin forged a 175 run partnership that took the game away
from the English. Sidhu launched himself into the England bowling attack
and made them suffer for any loose deliveries they bowled. He was
especially severe on the slower bowlers - Dermot Reeve and Graeme Hick.
Reeve went for thirty seven runs from his six overs and Hick's two overs
were blasted for eighteen runs. When Azhar was dismissed with the score on
179, Sidhu must have once again felt the momentum tilt towards England. The
opener soldiered bravely on despite losing Sachin Tendulkar, Ajay Sharma,
Kapil Dev and Kiran More for just 8 runs. When the seventh wicket fell
India still needed 52 runs for victory. Sidhu realised that this was the
time to take the initiative and pushed hard for victory. He found a steady
partner in Anil Kumble and saw India through to victory with two overs to
spare. Sidhu's unbeaten effort won him the man of the match award. The win
was crucial to India as it helped them take an unassailable 3-2 lead in the
6 match series.

Sidhu made a remarkable resurgence in the last part of his career and
established himself as one of the better fielders in the Indian side. His
efforts chasing the ball aggressively and diving around earned him the
nickname 'Jonty' among crowds and journalists alike.

Sidhu was one of a kind in Indian cricket. From being a man who was
referred to as 'Sid who?', he became 'Sixer Sidhu.' Whenever he walked out
to bat the crowds would begin chanting "Sixer! Sixer!" More often than not,
the Punjab opener obliged. After starting off as a compiler of runs rather
than a flashy stroke maker, Sidhu has ended his career as a prolific
batsman in the shorter version of the game. This, if anything is a
testimony to Sidhu's grit and determination.